The Hunter’s Gonna Lay Low - Chap 256
“I didn’t expect to come back here.”
They were back at the Jongno 3-ga underground dungeon— the very place where Cha Eui-jae had once fought his way through with Hong Ye-seong, Kkokko, and student Yoon Ga-eul. It was also the dungeon that had restructured itself, leading to a rough ordeal.
This time, he was with Lee Sa-young.
Lee Sa-young headed toward the control room at a leisurely pace. At that moment, the Hunter on duty inside the room, who had been dozing off, suddenly snapped his head up. After a moment, Cha Eui-jae recognized him— it was the same Hunter who’d been knocked out by Kkokko last time. The ID card around his neck displayed the logo of the Rift Management Office and the name Lee Min-hoon.
‘Guess he didn’t get fired. That’s a relief.’
Cha Eui-jae gave Lee Min-hoon a sympathetic nod. But Lee Min-hoon seemed to take it as a threat, glancing back and forth between Cha Eui-jae and Lee Sa-young with a wary look. Then, he quickly stood up and saluted them at a rigid ninety-degree angle. His cap, barely balanced on his head, slipped off with the sudden movement.
“Ah, hello! What brings you here?”
Lee Sa-young gave a slight nod in greeting.
“We’re going in. Two people. Purpose; to investigate the eroded dungeon.”
“J-Just the two of you?”
“Yeah.”
“Understood! Have a safe trip!”
Clearly tense, Lee Min-hoon hurriedly opened the window and handed them two entry cards. Without even looking at him, Lee Sa-young swiped a card at the device beside the door. With a deep rumbling, the heavy door slowly slid open.
Cha Eui-jae clenched his fist as if to silently encourage poor Lee Min-hoon. But Lee Min-hoon, rather than smiling, looked even more terrified.
Lee Sa-young, standing by the door, chided him.
“Why are you intimidating him?”
“Hey, it wasn’t intimidation; it was encouragement, encouragement. Shows what you know.”
“In what way does that look like encouragement? You looked like you were threatening to keep him quiet with that fist.”
“…Forget it.”
“You have to take into account that the mask hides your expression, so people can’t tell.”
At the end of the long tunnel, the dungeon entrance shimmered with a soft blue light. Pausing at the entrance, Lee Sa-young let out an “Ah” and held out a hand toward Cha Eui-jae. To hold hands?
‘For all his grumbling, he’s still young…’
Cha Eui-jae gave a soft laugh and took his hand. But Lee Sa-young turned to him with wide eyes.
“Um?”
“What?”
“Why are you holding my hand? Did you want to?”
“Hey, you were the one who held out your hand first.”
“I was asking for my sword.”
“Sword? What sword?”
“The one Hong Ye-seong gave you. I can’t capture anything with my abilities, so I at least need that.”
“…Then why didn’t you say so? Who would understand if you just hold out your hand?”
Cha Eui-jae tried to pull his hand away, but Lee Sa-young was faster. Lacing their fingers together, he brushed his thumb gently over Cha Eui-jae’s hand, making his neck grow warm. Lee Sa-young smiled with a glint in his eye.
“Let’s hold hands. Since we’re already doing it.”
“…”
“It’s reassuring to hold hands… for me too.”
The warmth of their touch made Cha Eui-jae’s skin tingle. Damn. He’d fallen into the trap again. Without further comment, he pulled out Hong Ye-seong’s sword from his inventory and handed it over. Lee Sa-young took the black longsword and strapped it to his waist, where it looked as if it belonged there all along. Cha Eui-jae watched him and spoke.
“Wait, I have something to say.”
“Mm.”
“When I was here last time, the dungeon was restructured.”
“Oh, right.”
“It might happen again.”
Lee Sa-young lowered his gaze thoughtfully.
“After that, when the investigation team came back in, it had… returned to normal. It definitely reacted to your presence.”
“…”
“Have you been to other eroded dungeons?”
“Yeah, a few times. But there was nothing special then.”
“Then it must’ve been a unique case. If the restructure happens again and we get separated…”
Lee Sa-young gave their intertwined hands a small shake.
“Hyung can find me, right?”
“…”
“You can do it, can’t you?”
A strange sense of déjà vu washed over him. Had they had a conversation like this before? But before he could trace the memory, Cha Eui-jae found himself nodding, as if hypnotized.
“Yes.”
“Good, then let’s go.”
The two stepped into the blue light at the same time.
After a brief wave of dizziness faded, Cha Eui-jae cautiously opened his eyes. The warmth of the hand he held was still there. When he glanced to the side, Lee Sa-young was quietly watching him, his fingers tracing the bones and skin on the back of Cha Eui-jae’s hand.
“Good, we’re still together.”
“Stop touching it…”
The area around the entrance was a dense forest with tall grass and trees. But the forest ended shortly after, and beyond the trees lay a wasteland covered in white ash. Lee Sa-young pointed toward the snowy remnants with an outstretched arm.
“That’s the eroded area. It’s spreading.”
“Looks like it’ll reach the entrance soon.”
“Probably.”
“What happens if it completely takes over?”
“No one knows. But since this place has the highest erosion rate of any dungeon we know…”
“…”
“We’ll probably be the first to find out.”
Cha Eui-jae moved toward the boundary between the forest and the eroded area. Jagged shards of ground stretched toward the horizon, now completely white. Cha Eui-jae gestured toward the far distance.
“Have you ever gone all the way out there? It’s pretty far.”
“No. The investigation team only went as far as the previously explored area for safety. They didn’t know where it might end, and the place had been restructured before… There are food and safety issues, too.”
Lee Sa-young glanced at Cha Eui-jae.
“Do you want to go?”
“Yeah.”
“All right, then.”
Lee Sa-young crossed the boundary and stepped onto the ashen ground. Why was he allowing this so easily? Cha Eui-jae had been prepared for a debate but let out a relieved sigh and followed. He muttered under his breath.
“…You’re letting me do this without a fight?”
“Better to let you do it in front of me than behind my back. Compared to sneaking around like last time.”
“When did I ever?”
“Oh, so many times you can’t even remember? Like here. With the master artisan and the high school student.”
“…”
“Poor Jung Bin and I were carefully investigating, and then the dungeon was restructured… and suddenly you were there, massacring monsters.”
Cha Eui-jae closed his mouth tightly. With so many offenses, there was no way he could win a verbal sparring match with Lee Sa-young. Lee Sa-young, arms crossed, didn’t let up on the teasing.
“I thought you remembered since you brought it up. Not much of a memory, huh?”
“You’re no stranger to sneaking around either.”
“Ah, we’re quite the match then.”
Cha Eui-jae gave Lee Sa-young’s leg a gentle kick. Lee Sa-young laughed, unaffected, and lifted their interlaced hands to brush his lips over the back of Cha Eui-jae’s hand.
“Let’s go as far as we can. I brought the essentials with me.”
***
Crunch, crunch… Two pairs of footprints stretched out over the soft, white ash. Cha Eui-jae glanced back over his shoulder. The green forest near the entrance had long disappeared from view, and though they had been walking for over two hours, they had yet to encounter a single monster. Lee Sa-young, walking alongside him, muttered quietly.
“Something’s strange.”
“Did the survey team encounter any monsters?”
“Yes. They even fought some.”
Lee Sa-young’s violet gaze scanned their surroundings. Apart from the sounds of their own breathing, there was nothing.
“It’s eerily empty. Almost unnaturally so.”
Cha Eui-jae approached a rock that was sticking out and brushed off the layer of white ash. It was half-buried and slightly tilted, but it looked like an ordinary street sign. However, the writing on it was unreadable, written in an unfamiliar script. Cha Eui-jae examined the letters carefully.
‘It’s the same script I saw in that book from the Seowon Guild…’
A book found in a dungeon, a sign from the real world found here in the dungeon. Cha Eui-jae rubbed the edge of the sign.
At that moment—
Clang!
“…”
Both of them froze. Cha Eui-jae raised a finger to signal for silence. Lee Sa-young quietly placed a hand on the hilt of his sword. There was a presence nearby, a hint of movement. A monster? No, it was…
It was a human presence.
Cha Eui-jae whispered in a low voice.
“Is there someone else in here besides us?”
“No.”
“What about anyone who entered this dungeon but didn’t make it back?”
“No.”
“Not even one?”
Lee Sa-young nodded in response instead of answering aloud. Then whose presence was this? Cha Eui-jae quickly took the sword hanging at Lee Sa-young’s side, still sheathed. Lee Sa-young looked at him in disbelief, but he didn’t have a choice. It’d be quicker to subdue someone with a sheathed sword than with his fists.
“Just borrowing it for a bit.”
“Oh, so just because you say ‘borrowing’ after taking it, that’s supposed to be fine?”
“We don’t have time for this. Just stay hidden over there.”
“You’re going to fight?”
“It’ll end faster if I handle it. You can’t even use poison right now.”
Lee Sa-young raised his hands and ambled over to hide behind a rock that stuck out, crouching down in a way that was hardly hidden.
He scanned the area quickly. Two flickering flames were moving closer to them. Cha Eui-jae gripped the sword and took a few steps forward. Just then, a dark figure flashed across his vision. A chill ran down his spine, prickling at the back of his neck. Cha Eui-jae quickly raised the sword.
Clang—!!
A powerful shock traveled up the sword. Right after, something sharp and silver gleamed as it shot toward his neck. Cha Eui-jae swiftly tilted his head back to dodge it.
‘A sword?’
But it was too flexible to be an ordinary sword. Cha Eui-jae swung the sheathed sword to block the rapid strikes coming his way.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
His opponent was aiming solely for his vital points. Impressive skill. It was clear this wasn’t a monster. So maybe he could communicate with them? Cha Eui-jae quickly called out.
“Wait! Just a moment!”
“…”
The relentless thrusts aiming to kill him paused. The weapon threatening his vital points was a finely crafted rapier. The opponent, dressed in a black cloak, slowly lowered their hood, revealing themselves. Brown eyes squinted in a frown, and Cha Eui-jae found himself reflected in them. It was a face he knew well. Cautiously, he spoke.
“…Honeybee?”
The brown eyes widened slowly.
